MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- Traumatic Brain Injuries, blindness, cancer, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, severe burns; whatever the affliction, one organization stands out in assuring the best possible care will be given to our special operations heroes.
The U.S. Special Operations Command’s Care Coalition, established in 2005, serves as a model advocacy program for all wounded, ill, or injured special operations warriors and their families.
“The point of the Care Coalition is to enhance SOF (special operations forces) and their families’ quality of life, as well as to strengthen special operations readiness,” said Army Capt. Dawn Paul, the chief of advocacy operations with the Care Coalition. “We are kind of the conduit, the link, the go between to help bridge any gaps in care or services for our special operations forces.”
The Care Coalition works to ensure wounded SOF service members receive the best possible care and all of the benefits available to them from programs established by government organizations such as the Department of Defense, Department of Veteran's Affairs, Tricare, and the Wounded Warrior Regiment, according to Paul.
“We don’t want the service member to ever feel dissention or uneasiness,” Paul said. “We want them to just say, ‘ok this is my problem, someone’s fixing it.’”
The Care Coalition has educated more than 70 benevolent organizations on the unique requirements of SOF and what government programs can not support.
“Our relationship with the different benevolent associations that work only for special operations, enables the nonprofit organizations to regularly contact us and seek ways to support our SOF wounded warriors and their families,” said Christina Infelise, the U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Special Operations Command wounded warrior advocate with the Care Coalition. “We can use benefits the conventional side can’t provide.”
The Care Coalition has already worked through those government and charitable organizations to help many service members. They have ensured SOF service members suffering from Traumatic Brain Injury have continued their rehabilitation toward independent living. They have also linked SOF service members to organizations like Paws For Patriots, one of a few dog programs, to provide them with guide dogs.
The moment many family members of wounded SOF service members enter the hospital, the benefits of the Care Coalition become apparent. The Care Coalition provides advocacy support and information on everything SOF casualties and their families could possibly need to know, according to Infelise.
“We basically let them know that we’ll help handle all those little moving pieces,” Infelise said. “So they can just focus on being in that hospital room, and staying with their service member.”
Paul said it is important to note the Care Coalition in no way replaces a service member’s chain of command. However, at the request of a Component Command, the Care Coalition and SOCOM can work to try to effect positive changes in legislation for wounded warriors.
“We support the chain of command for all components, MARSOC being one of them,” Paul said. “That’s one big way that we fill the gap for the need, or care of our wounded warriors.”
In a past case, a policy change regarding combat pay for service members who are wounded, ill, or injured and forward deployed was changed in May 2008. The change excluded special operations and duty pays associated with SOF service members, according to Paul.
“We got a lot of feed back from the services and the components saying, ‘this just isn’t working right,’” Paul said. “‘Our guys are not getting their money. They are not being protected.’”
Key leadership from SOCOM went to the senior oversight committee that writes polices for wounded warriors, and addressed the issues. The Care Coalition provided input and insight as to the inconsistencies within the policy.
“So we do have the ability to make change at the legislative level, and that’s an amazing thing to see,” Paul said.
SOF service members interested in contacting the Care Coalition for more information can visit their website at www.socom.mil, or call (877) 672-3039.